Titanic Has A Deleted Scene Where Jack Gets Into A Full-On Fight With Another Character, And I'm Bummed It Was Cut

I have seen Titanic countless times over the years. Between experiencing the massive ‘90s movie on the big screen twice, owning it on VHS (remember that double-tape set?), DVD, and Blu-ray, and having access to it on some of the best streaming services, I’ve grown up with this epic disaster and romance film. However, it wasn’t until recently that I discovered the existence of a deleted scene that I totally think should have made the final cut.

No, I’m not talking about the Titanic alternate ending, or one of the more than two dozen minor scenes with the late Bill Paxton that were left on the cutting room floor of James Cameron’s box office juggernaut. Instead, I’m referring to an incredibly tense and awesome fight during the sinking of the famous ship involving Leonardo DiCaprio’s Jack Dawson and one of the movie’s main villains. And after watching it for myself, I’m bummed this wasn’t in the final release.

The Jack Dawson And Spicer Lovejoy Fight Is Seriously One Of James Cameron's Tensest Sequences

There's a deleted scene on my 2012 Blu-ray copy of Titanic (It may be on other releases as well) that features a full-on fight between Jack Dawson and Spicer Lovejoy (the late David Warner) that takes place right after Caledon Hockley realizes he put the Heart of the Ocean diamond in his coat, which he then put Rose DeWitt Bukater (Kate Winslet), after his fiancee ran off with Jack.

In the final cut of the film, we cut to Jack and Rose escaping to steerage and then eventually to the main deck when the ship ultimately sinks, but the deleted scene follows the two lovers as they have one final encounter with Cal’s right-hand man in what is one of James Cameron’s tensest sequences. Seriously, Lovejoy chasing Jack and Rose through a partially flooded first-class dining room, with all those flickering lights, creaking sounds from the sinking ship, and furniture floating around them, is like something out of Cameron’s great sci-fi movies or horror flicks, not a historical drama.

It Also Features One Of Jack Dawson's Most Badass Lines

The slow-paced yet incredibly intense chase sequence, the short yet brutal fistfight between Jack and Lovejoy, and the general atmosphere of the deleted scene are all cinematic as hell, but the whole set piece also features one of Leonardo DiCaprio’s character’s most badass lines as he punches the mean ‘90s movie villain:

Not only is this line great on its own, but it’s also a great callback to a similar line spoken by Lovejoy after he punched a handcuffed Jack and left him to die in the sinking ship earlier in the night. I’m not saying Jack Dawson wasn’t a great ‘90s movie character before this, but this scene would have made him even more memorable.

I Honestly Think Including The Scene Would Have Made For An Even Better Movie

Though I can totally see why co-editors Conrad Buff, James Cameron, and Richard A. Harris decided to cut this five-and-a-half-minute sequence from the final product (the movie is over three hours long), I think including it would have made Titanic an even better movie. Outside of adding a few minutes to an already exhausting runtime, the fight doesn’t take away anything from the movie, it gives us a great James Cameron scene, and fixes a minor continuity error with Lovejoy’s bloodied face.

I’m not saying I want a five-hour cut of Titanic, but this incredible fight scene should have been included, if only for Jack Dawson’s “Compliments of…” line.